Healthy Dal Makhani Recipe | Dal makhani without butter and cream

What is low cal dal makhani?

Whole black urad dal infused with lots of flavors is low cal dal makhani. Since the name has the word “makhani” we cannot miss or omit the smoothness of the dish. Generally lots of butter and heavy cream goes in to make dal makhani, but in the recipe, I have not used any of these, not even a drop… still, the dal has that creamy texture. Low cal dal makhani can be served with naan or rice but keeping the whole meal healthy I like to serve it with some tandoori roti.

Let’s talk about the ingredients for Healthy Dal Makhani Recipe

Making an exception no kidney beans (rajma) have been added to make low-fat dal makhani. Since no butter or cream or even milk has been used to make this recipe, the biggest challenge was to how to get that smoothness without which dal makhani will only be a dal {makhani (strike out)}. A part of the recipe takes care of this thing. For the flavors, the dal is cooked with few whole spices. For the gorgeous color, I have used tomato puree and Kashmiri red chili powder. Both these ingredients help in maintaining the color of dal makhani. My homemade tomato puree also ensures that the texture of healthy dal makhani is totally maintained. Recipe link has been shared in the ingredients section. Although Kashmiri red chili powder works the best for this recipe, you can also use the regular red chili powder. However, reduce the quantity to ½ tbsp. Further, a very flavorful tempering of garlic, red chilies, dry fenugreek leaves, and fresh coriander just take the dal to another level.

Other Dal recipes on the blog

Already on the blog is the Jain Dal Makhani recipe. Yes dal makhani without onion and garlic, still totally scrumptious. View the recipe here. You might also like the collection of dal recipes. Here it is.

5.Pressure cook dal on high flame till the first whistle. Thereafter, reduce the flame to low and cook for 30 minutes. Once the pressure is over, open the cooker. You will find absolutely cooked and soft dal. The water would have been absorbed by the dal. At this stage you can discard the whole spices.

6.Once it cools a bit transfer ½ cup of cooked dal to a grinder jar. Add in a couple of ice cubes.

7.Grind to a smooth paste.

8.Add to the remaining cooked dal.

9.Also add in ½ cup tomato puree.

10.1 tsp ginger paste also goes in.

11.For the heat add 1 tbsp Kashmiri red chili powder.

12.Add 1 and ½ cup water and let the dal simmer for half an hour.

13.Thereafter, check the seasoning and consistency. Adjust the same if required.

Pressure cook dal on high flame till the first whistle. Thereafter, reduce the flame to low and cook for 30 minutes. Once the pressure is over, open the cooker. You will find absolutely cooked and soft dal. The water would have been absorbed by the dal. At this stage you can discard the whole spices.

Once it cools a bit transfer ½ cup of cooked dal to a grinder jar. Add in a couple of ice cubes.

Grind to a smooth paste.

Add to the remaining cooked dal.

Also, add in the ½ cup tomato puree.

1 tsp ginger paste also goes in.

For the heat add 1 tbsp Kashmiri red chili powder.

Add 1 and ½ cup water and let the dal simmer for half an hour.

Thereafter, check the seasoning and consistency. Adjust the same if required.

For the tempering heat 1 tsp of oil. Yes only this much.

Add 8 finely chopped garlic cloves. Cook till light golden.

Then add 2 dry whole red chilies.

Finely add 1 tsp each of dry fenugreek leaves and chopped coriander leaves. Cook for 30 seconds. Pour it on the dal.

Tried this recipe?

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About the Author

Author’s Name

Vini

Hi! I am CA Vini Mehta. A Chartered Accountant by profession, a food blogger by passion! First of all, I would like to thank you for stopping by at Viniscookbook, I hope you have a good time. Here, yo...u will find the recipes which have been tried, at times re-tried in my kitchen and relished on the dining table. I am mother of two kids and the wife of a person with a high and selective taste sense, so basically anything, before finding its place on the blog, has many levels to cross and clear.
This journey started a couple of years back. Before that I was making the most usual kind of food. The only experiment used to be asking my mother how to make something new or different☺. Then, one day, I tried a recipe for butter cookies. And they did not get to go in the container as they were over before I could store them. That day I was introduced to the joy of experimenting with recipes. And I loved everything else that followed especially garnishing and photographing food. I am still not well versed with the photography dos and don’ts but I love to experiment and learn, be it photography or cooking.
Hope you too enjoy this journey as much as I do☺! Stay healthy, stay tuned!.